St Lawrence Church of England Primary School, Rowhedge

Overview

This ungraded inspection confirms that St Lawrence Church of England Primary School has “taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.” The school is described as a “nurturing community where pupils flourish,” underpinned by values of “courage, community and compassion.” Pupils are “happy, respectful and very well cared for,” demonstrating enthusiasm for their learning and pride in their achievements.

Strengths

• Pupils access a “well-planned curriculum” with “high-quality resources,” developing a “thorough understanding” of how subjects interrelate.
• Reading provision is strong, with staff “well trained in the delivery of the phonics programme” and adept at supporting those who find reading challenging.
• The school supports pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) “very effectively,” ensuring they “learn and achieve well from their various starting points.”
• Pupils become “energetic, confident advocates” through the ‘agents of change’ programme, developing into “considerate young citizens.”
• Staff provide “timely and tenacious support” for pupil well-being, and any rare behavioural issues are “dealt with quickly and effectively.”

Areas to improve

• Staff sometimes focus on activity completion rather than ensuring pupils understand writing and spelling techniques, hindering the independent writing skills of a small number of pupils.
• Leaders’ and governors’ oversight of documentation lacks precision, with some policies available to parents not reflecting current practice or being shared internally.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”